Important Things No One Talks About

[mighty]

People always talk about swing plane, transition, rotation, legs, hips, posture etc. Not that I think they're not important, but it seems most instructions dont focus enough on small details that make or break the golf swing. I went from ball speed in the 110s to 140 mph with the driver just by fixing my right hand, right arm and left shoulder, all I did was let my right hand take more control, adjusted my finger positions, bent my right arm less and kept my left shoulder closer to my body. Do you guys have any small details or secrets that are seldom talked about and they work like magic?    

[billchao]

2 hours ago, mighty said:

Do you guys have any small details or secrets that are seldom talked about and they work like magic?    

The night before your round, set down a basin with 3” of water and stand with your left foot in it (with your golf shoes on, this is important). Now pivot around the foot with your right foot and make three full turns around the basin with exactly nine steps per revolution while singing twinkle twinkle little star. You will drive the ball to the best of your ability the next round. Guaranteed.

But in all seriousness, there’s no magic pill in golf and definitely no one tip fits all type of advice. People have different feels and priorities in their swing.

[klineka]

2 hours ago, mighty said:

People always talk about swing plane, transition, rotation, legs, hips, posture etc. Not that I think they're not important, but it seems most instructions dont focus enough on small details that make or break the golf swing. 

I'm not an instructor, but I bet most instruction doesn't focus on small details because most people dont do the major things right, so most people will see a bigger "bang for their buck" when the instructor focuses on major pieces first, then after the major pieces are fixed, then focusing on smaller details.

Often times fixing major pieces will correct smaller details too.

2 hours ago, mighty said:

I went from ball speed in the 110s to 140 mph with the driver just by fixing my right hand, right arm and left shoulder, all I did was let my right hand take more control, adjusted my finger positions, bent my right arm less and kept my left shoulder closer to my body. 

That's great that fixing those things worked for you, that sounds like a lot to change, so what you might consider "small details" would likely be considered "major" to other people. 

2 hours ago, mighty said:

Do you guys have any small details or secrets that are seldom talked about and they work like magic?    

None of these are secrets, these aren't magic. I don't believe there are any magic tips or tricks in golf.

• I focus on the major priority pieces from my instructor, practice them properly, then see him again once I have those down and get a new priority piece or two. Rinse and repeat.
• I spend more time practicing my full swing than short game and putting.
• Aim at the center of the green when more than 100 yards out 

[boogielicious]

I went to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Class of ‘78. I was on the golf team. We had a magic pill class and I used it to get my ball speed up to 150.😜

 

[IowaGreg]

2 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

I went to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Class of ‘78. I was on the golf team. We had a magic pill class and I used it to get my ball speed up to 150.😜

 

Would that be 1878? 

[boogielicious]

Just now, IowaGreg said:

Would that be 1878? 

Lol! Even 1978 makes me old!

[ncates00]

4 hours ago, mighty said:

People always talk about swing plane, transition, rotation, legs, hips, posture etc. Not that I think they're not important, but it seems most instructions dont focus enough on small details that make or break the golf swing. I went from ball speed in the 110s to 140 mph with the driver just by fixing my right hand, right arm and left shoulder, all I did was let my right hand take more control, adjusted my finger positions, bent my right arm less and kept my left shoulder closer to my body. Do you guys have any small details or secrets that are seldom talked about and they work like magic?    

For me, as a strong-ish grip, righthanded player, it has been twisting the grip clockwise (opening) through the backswing to get more cupping in my left wrist, as opposed to flat.  Then on the downswing, more or less feel like I keep that twist, so I can deliver the club more neutral and more on my start line.  

Before, I fell into the flat left wrist at the top and had a massively shut face.  That would cause me to jump/hump a lot to shallow the club in an attempt to open the face.  Led to lots of pushes, push draws, hooks, fat, thin, and just generally less consistency.  

Now, I feel I stay more in the shot and can turn more on the ball and be much more neutral because I don't have so much of a shut face.  I also find that I curve the ball much straighter and my misses aren't as wild, due to the more neutral face and path.

[ChetlovesMer]

When swinging a golf club, I try not to think.

As my high school football coach used to tell me; "Don't think! It can only hurt the team!"

[TRUCKER]

140 MPH swing speed...

[billchao]

38 minutes ago, TRUCKER said:

140 MPH swing speed...

Nobody has mentioned that in this thread.

[FlyingAce]

1 hour ago, TRUCKER said:

140 MPH swing speed...

140mph BALL speed, not swing speed...

[DaveP043]

2 hours ago, boogielicious said:

Lol! Even 1978 makes me old!

Hey, i DID graduate college in 1978.  Well, I guess maybe i AM old too.  But still alive, for now 

[ChetlovesMer]

6 hours ago, mighty said:

People always talk about swing plane, transition, rotation, legs, hips, posture etc. Not that I think they're not important, but it seems most instructions dont focus enough on small details that make or break the golf swing. I went from ball speed in the 110s to 140 mph with the driver just by fixing my right hand, right arm and left shoulder, all I did was let my right hand take more control, adjusted my finger positions, bent my right arm less and kept my left shoulder closer to my body. Do you guys have any small details or secrets that are seldom talked about and they work like magic?    

@mighty, in all seriousness. I think your question encompasses what we hear all the time. 
There are so many folks out there looking for that little fix that works like magic. 

The trouble is; that doesn't always exist. 

Case in point. I play a very neutral grip. It's not particularly strong, not particularly weak. My bad miss is a snap hook. I've worked on a number of things over the years to mitigate that miss. So, then I'm playing last year with a couple of guys I've never played with before and there were a couple holes in a row where hitting a fade off the tee is preferable to a draw, which can run off the sloped fairway and get into trouble. I played a fade on both of these holes. (Actually I was quite happy with both tee shots). At any rate one of the guys I was playing with was convinced that my grip was "too weak". 

Even though I was probably a dozen strokes ahead of this guy at this point and those were the only 2 fades I'd hit to that point in the round, he got it in his mind that my grip was "too weak". For the rest of the round (probably 7-8 holes) he was desperately trying to convince me to strengthen my grip. Mind you, this guy's grip was so strong he was almost grabbing the underside of the club. He kept saying "A stronger grip will work like magic.... A stronger grip will work like magic." 

I finally told him that maybe the stronger grip will work like magic for you. But I've fought off a snaphook for most of my adult golfing life. Even when I told him that he still wouldn't let it go. I'm sure he drove home from the course mumbling to himself "If that guy would just strengthen his grip...." 

The point of all this babble is that a "Magic Little Fix" for you might be a "Poison Pill" for me. 

 

 

[Buckeyebowman]

2 hours ago, DaveP043 said:

Hey, i DID graduate college in 1978.  Well, I guess maybe i AM old too.  But still alive, for now 

You're still younger than me! Maybe by about 3-4 years. If most instructors for the general public focused on the "finer" points of the swing, they'd be out of business! That's for the guys on Tour, or guys who are looking to qualify as an amateur for the U.S. Open or U.S. Amateur! 

[TRUCKER]

14 hours ago, FlyingAce said:

140mph BALL speed, not swing speed...

Yep. You're right. Now it makes sense.

[Groucho Valentine]

An important thing we should be talking about is whether or not if this guy is actually THE HAMMER

[mighty]

19 hours ago, klineka said:

I'm not an instructor, but I bet most instruction doesn't focus on small details because most people dont do the major things right, so most people will see a bigger "bang for their buck" when the instructor focuses on major pieces first, then after the major pieces are fixed, then focusing on smaller details.

Often times fixing major pieces will correct smaller details too.

That's great that fixing those things worked for you, that sounds like a lot to change, so what you might consider "small details" would likely be considered "major" to other people. 

None of these are secrets, these aren't magic. I don't believe there are any magic tips or tricks in golf.

• I focus on the major priority pieces from my instructor, practice them properly, then see him again once I have those down and get a new priority piece or two. Rinse and repeat.
• I spend more time practicing my full swing than short game and putting.
• Aim at the center of the green when more than 100 yards out 

But golf requires so much precision, even if you do the major things right, small details here and there a little off probably mean death of the swing, perhaps distance loss of over 40 yards and a difference of 20 handicap. For me, little hand and arm issues had costed me 20-30 mph ball speed.   

[iacas]

43 minutes ago, mighty said:

But golf requires so much precision, even if you do the major things right, small details here and there a little off probably mean death of the swing, perhaps distance loss of over 40 yards and a difference of 20 handicap.

That's not, by definition, how that works.